Ghanaian University Students Research Articles

Limited negative effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on mental health measures of Ghanaian university students.

BackgroundStress and mental health outcomes are negatively correlated among university students throughout the world. Reports of differences in stress perception by gender exist, but there is limited data on students from sub-Saharan African countries. This study describes the burden of perceived and financial stress; characterizes mood and degree of anxiety symptoms; examines stress coping mechanisms, including resilience and repetitive negative thinking (RNT); and explores how students at a Ghanaian university believed the COVID-19 pandemic affected these measures.MethodsStudents (n = 129) were recruited from the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, Kumasi, Ghana from October 2020 - January 2021. Validated surveys were used. Participants were asked “Are your answers to the questions affected by the COVID-19 pandemic?”ResultsNo differences in mean scores were observed between genders. For female students, financial stress was positively associated with RNT (p = 0.009), negative mood (p = 0.002), and anxiety (p < 0.001). Males were more likely to report decreased stress during the pandemic (p = 0.002), but there was no difference in mental health outcomes by perceived stress (PS) change category among males. Effects of the pandemic on mental health outcomes were mixed, but substantial proportions of students reported improvements or no change in financial stress, mood, anxiety, and RNT.LimitationsStudents from one university particiapted in this cross-sectional survey.ConclusionsThis study adds to the understanding of how higher education students are experiencing stress and are coping with the uncertainties of the COVID-19 pandemic in Ghana.

Address Terms Used among Male Basketball Players at a Ghanaian University

In the last three decades, there has been an increasing interest among scholars in the use of address terms across domains such as academia, politics, religion, family, friendship, and sports. The present study examines the range of address terms and the factors that influence their use among male basketball players in a Ghanaian university. In this study, we draw on the notion of community of practice. An ethnographic research approach, comprising mainly participant and non-participant observation and interview, was adopted in collecting our data. Two key findings emerged from the analysis. First, Ghanaian male university students used four major categories of address terms while playing basketball: personal names, descriptive terms, nicknames, and ethnic-related terms. Second, in general, these address forms constituted an isogloss or idiolect, identifying the male basketball players as a distinct community of practice. These findings have implications for the sociolinguistic research on address terms in the domain of sports, gendered language, and further research on communication in sports.

Convergence insufficiency symptom survey (CISS) scores are predictive of severity and number of clinical signs of convergence insufficiency in young adult Africans

PurposeThis study aimed to investigate the correlation between convergence insufficiency symptom survey (CISS) score and the signs of convergence insufficiency (CI) and to evaluate the sensitivity and specificity of the CISS to predict CI and ametropia among young adult university students. MethodThis prospective cross-sectional clinic-based study included 300 first year university students (mean age = 21.58 (SD ± 2.2) years) who consecutively reported for eye examination. Participants were administered the CISS questionnaire and investigated for the signs of CI. Diagnosis of CI was based on presence of three or four signs. The correlation between the CISS score and the signs of CI were determined and Receiver Operation Characteristics (ROC) curves were used to evaluate sensitivity and specificity. ResultsThere were significant correlations between CISS score and the clinical signs of CI namely NPC break (rs = 0.622, p = 0.0001), NPC recovery (rs = 0.620, p = 0.0001), near exophoria (rs = 0.434, p = 0.0001), near PFV blur (rs = -0.359, p = 0.0001), near PFV break (-0.306, p = 0.0001), near PFV recovery (rs = -0.326, p = 0.0001) and gradient AC/A ratio (rs = -0.290, p = 0.0001). There was a significant positive correlation between CISS score and the number of clinical signs of CI (rs = 0.575, p-value = 0.0001). The CISS had good sensitivity (AOC = 0.882) to predict CI and poor sensitivity (AOC = 0.642) to predict ametropia. ConclusionThe CISS score is correlated with the severity and number of signs of CI in young adult Ghanaian university students. Its use in addition to clinical investigative testing may give a definitive diagnosis of symptomatic CI.

Victims or Criminals? Knowledge, Perceptions, and Attitudes of Ghanaian University Students on Illicit Drugs and Substance Users

Victims or Criminals? Knowledge, Perceptions, and Attitudes of Ghanaian University Students on Illicit Drugs and Substance Users

Meaning in Life Among Ghanaian University Students: Does Religious Commitment Matter?

Religiosity is widespread in Africa and permeates the life of the continent's young adults in ways yet to be fully understood. It is unclear what meanings young Africans perceive with their religiosity or the pathways to experiencing meaning. Therefore, we investigated the role of religious commitment in the search for and experience of meaning among young people in Ghana. In a cross-sectional design study, 342 Ghanaian students (female = 67%; mean age = 21years, SD = 3.25) completed the Religious Commitment Inventory and the Meaning in Life Questionnaire. Structural equation modelling (SEM) in Mplus was used to test direct and interaction effects to demonstrate the dynamic relationships among religious commitment, and the search for and the presence of meaning. While results indicated a positive association between religious commitment and presence of meaning, the search for meaning was unrelated to religious commitment or presence of meaning. The interaction between search for meaning and religious commitment did not result in a significant effect on presence of meaning. These findings suggest that in this Ghanaian sample, religious commitment played a role in determining meaningful life experience, but the search for meaning did not play a role in the experience of meaning.

Personality, Entrepreneurship Education and Entrepreneurial Intention Among Ghanaian Students

The connection between personality traits, entrepreneurship curriculum and entrepreneurial intention has received inadequate research consideration among students in Africa to inform policies and curriculum development. An explanatory cross-sectional survey of 324 Ghanaian university students was assessed in a path analysis to model entrepreneurial intention as a function of personality characteristics, mediated by entrepreneurship curriculum and moderated by teaching methods, while controlling for age, gender and program of study. There were direct significant effects of entrepreneurial attitude, need for achievement and locus of control on entrepreneurial intention. The conditional effect of teaching method on entrepreneurial attitude was also significant. We found evidence of mediated-moderation for entrepreneurial attitude and intention, with no evidence found for locus of control and need for achievement. We have provided empirical evidence to support the ongoing discussion on the effect of personality traits on entrepreneurial intention to guide the development of policy and curriculum on entrepreneurship education. Implications of our study for extant literature on personality traits-entrepreneurship intention nexus, aspiring student entrepreneurs, university managers, entrepreneurship educators and policy decision makers are accentuated.

Conducting Research Work as a Requirement for University Undergraduate Studies: Challenges of Distance Education Students in Ghana

AbstractAs a partial condition for the successful completion of school, and for certification reasons, undergraduate distance education students in Ghanaian universities are required to conduct research work. Due to the mode of teaching and learning activities, it appears such students are at a disadvantage. In this study, we examined the challenges distance education students encounter in conducting their research work in two universities in Ghana. A cross-sectional survey was conducted using 866 distance education students sampled from the study centres across the country. Results from a confirmatory factor analysis, using 5,000 bootstrap samples, revealed challenges from the students, supervisors and the institutions. Based on our results, we recommend that there should be structured policies by university management and supervisors to relieve students of the challenges they encounter when conducting their research work. The study also encouraged students to devote the needed time, commitment and motivation to complete their research work on time. Suggestions for further studies were made based on the findings.

Whistleblowing intentions of accounting students

PurposeThis study aims to investigate the intentions of a section of Ghanaian university students towards whistleblowing and the factors that predict such intentions.Design/methodology/approachThis study used the survey method of research, and data was gathered through the use of questionnaires. A total of 524 accounting students from the University of Ghana Business School participated in the survey. The structural equation modelling technique was used to analyse the data.FindingsThe findings of this study show that the sampled students have greater intentions to report wrongdoings when detected and that majority of the students would prefer to use internal mechanisms for reporting purposes than using external means. Further, the study found students’ attitude towards whistleblowing and subjective norm to be key predictors of internal whistleblowing intentions whereas perceived behavioural control was found to have a positive influence on the intention to blow the whistle externally.Research limitations/implicationsFindings of this study have implications for policymakers who have a keen interest in enhancing whistleblowing activities and whistleblower protection.Originality/valueThis study provides some insights into the whistleblowing intentions of students. An understanding of the views of students towards whistleblowing and the factors driving their intentions should be useful to organisations that may use these students upon graduation.

Privacy Issues in Libraries with Online Services: Attitudes and Concerns of Academic Librarians and University Students in Ghana

This study surveyed librarians’ and students’ attitudes, perceptions, and concerns on privacy in Ghanaian universities with the aim of seeking a better alignment of their perspectives in the online library context. The study adapted and applied the instrument developed by Zimmer that assessed attitudes and practices of librarians in the United States on privacy rights and protecting patrons’ privacy in the library. The study found that, between librarians and students in Ghanaian universities, there was a need for greater control over their personal data and a need for ethical responsibility on the part of data collecting online library agents; both groups expressed dislike for state censorship and corporate monopoly over their personal data. However, despite their positive attitude about the strong role of librarians in guaranteeing their personal data, a significant number of them demonstrate little faith in librarians to actualize the protection of their personal data. Finally, privacy attitudes and concerns of academic librarians were noted to align with those of university students in Ghana. Among others, it was recommended that Ghanaian academic librarians integrate privacy education and awareness creation in their universities, emphasizing the need to make informed online decisions and exposing potential repercussions of their decisions while using online library and digital resources.

Video/Computer Game Addiction among University Students in Ghana: Prevalence, Correlates and Effects of Some Demographic Factors

Background: This study represented the first investigation of video/computer game addiction in Ghana and Africa. We investigated the prevalence of video game addiction and some of its correlates. In addition, the effects of some demographic factors on video game addiction were examined. Methods: A sample of Ghanaian University students (n= 263) from three public universities in Ghana were randomly selected. 136 were males whereas 127 were females. The mean age of the participants was 21.65 years. Results: We found that 12.2% (n=32) of the total sample were addicted to playing video games when a monothetic approach was used (i.e., every criterion for video game addiction were met), while 31.2% (n=82) of the total sample were addicted to playing video games when a polythetic approach was used (i.e., half of the criteria for video game addiction were met). Males spent more time and were addicted to playing video games than females. Our findings also revealed that students who played online games reported being addicted to playing video/computer games than offline gamers. Video game addiction was positively related to time spent playing video games and depression. In contrast, video game addiction was negatively related to self-esteem. No relationship was found between video game addiction and life satisfaction. Conclusions: Our high prevalence rates suggest that video game addiction is a problematic issue among the Ghanaian University students and needs proper attention from researchers and clinicians.

Physicochemical and bacteriological quality of sachet water used by Ghanaian university students: implications for public health

Abstract This study analyses the quality of sachet water consumed by university students in Metropolitan Kumasi, Ghana. Thirty sachet water samples from ten different brands were tested for their physical and bacteriological quality using meters and titrimetric method and most probable number method, respectively. Overall, one half of the sachet water samples were highly contaminated with total and faecal coliform. While the mean total coliform/100 mL concentration of ANG, NOV, IM, PD and DKN were 9.15 × 105, 2.35 × 106, 9.15 × 105, 4.15 × 105 and 9.15 × 105 respectively, we recorded faecal coliform counts of 2.3 × 105, 4.15 × 105, 2.3 × 105, 2.3 × 105 and 2.3 × 105, respectively for ANG, NOV, IM, PD and DKN. Moreover, samples from DKN brand showed Escherichia coli count of 4.0 × 104. The conductivity ranged from 2.24 μS/cm to 43.60 μS/cm while the mean total alkalinity of all samples ranged from 33.33 mg/L to 120 mg/L. The coliform contamination levels of the water samples violated the guidelines and standards of WHO for drinking water quality. Ghanaian regulatory agencies should intensify the monitoring and surveillance activities to ensure compliance with strict hygienic measures by sachet water producers.

Ghanaian university students’ entry grades in English and their performance in academic writing

Although there is a strong interrelationship between English proficiency and academic English as evidenced by several studies in the South African educational context, studies that explore the correlation between the standard of English and performance in university first-year interventionist courses in academic English in the Ghanaian university context are virtually nonexistent. The level of work elsewhere, especially in South Africa provides a strong motivation for this line of inquiry in another African university. This study attempts to correlate performance of students in English at the point of entry to the University of Ghana and their performance in academic writing. The academic records of a total of 23,806 students, composed of Mature Students (716), Ordinary “O” Level students (2,199), and Senior Secondary School students (20,891), and covering a period of five years were analyzed. The grades students obtained in English were correlated with the grades they obtained in academic writing at the end of a onesemester academic writing course. The analysis indicates a weak relationship between the students’ entry grade for English and their final grade in academic writing. Keywords: Computer supported collaborative work, academic writing, Facebook, perceived self-efficacy, academic acculturation

Medical abortions among university students in Ghana: implications for reproductive health education and management.

PurposeIn Ghana, unsafe abortion is a major cause of maternal mortality. Even though pharmaceutical drugs seem to be a key means of unsafe abortion, a paucity of evidence exists on the issue among adolescents, students, and other groups at risk. This study therefore explores the abortion experiences of Ghanaian university students with particular reference to pharmaceutical drugs to fill the knowledge gap and enrich the evidence base for reproductive health education, policies, and interventions on abortions among students.Patients and methodsUndergraduate students from the University of Ghana were randomly selected and interviewed. The interviews was recorded, transcribed, and analyzed thematically using the framework analysis.ResultsStudents were aware of safe medical abortion services but were reluctant to use them because of cost, stigma, and proximity. Generally, medical abortions were more likely to be self-induced among students with misoprostol-based drugs administered orally or vaginally. However, students also used various over-the-counter drugs, contraceptives, and prescription drugs singly, in series, or in combinations to induce abortion. Yet students had relatively little knowledge on the inherent risks and long-term implications of unsafe medical abortions and were more likely to have repeat abortions through unsafe medical methods.ConclusionStudents’ knowledge and awareness of safe medical abortion avenues have not influenced their propensity to use them because of stigma, cost, and other factors. Rather, several methods of unsafe medical abortions are used increasingly with dire long-term effects on students. Serious knowledge gaps exist among students on the methods and risks of medical abortion. Consequently, there is an urgent need to revise current abortion management approaches and redirect attention toward reducing stigma and financial and social costs of safe abortion services, and increasing the proactive engagement, counseling, and management of medical abortions among students.

Anaphore Nominale Dans Des Récits Écrits Par Des Étudiants Ghanéens : Les Effets D’une Séquence Didactique

This paper assesses the impact of a sequence of didactic interventions on the use of nominal anaphors in a narrative text produced by Ghanaian university students of French as a foreign language. This study is necessitated by the lack of research investigating the effects of instruction on the use of cohesive devices in learner writing. 25 second-year students of the University of Cape Coast participated in a didactic sequence based on the types of nominal anaphors used in folktales. The impact of the teaching sequence was assessed by comparing the results obtained during the pretest with those of the post-test. The results showed improvements in students’use of nominal anaphoric resources. This was manifested in the increased diversification of lexical resources and the increased use of marked anaphoric expressions. These improvements show that the skilful usage of nominal anaphoric resources can be quickly developed in the frame of an adequate pedagogical intervention.

Ghanaian university students perception of their readiness to teach cutting out of garments upon graduation

The Universities of Cape Coast (UCC) and Education Winneba (UEW) are public universities in Ghana where students are trained to become teachers mainly at the secondary level. This paper was aimed at finding out the readiness of graduates from these two universities to teach cutting out of garments, through making pattern or cutting freehand, upon graduation. All final year students who had offered clothing as part of their programme during the 2013/2014 academic year were used for the study. A total number of 28 and 60 participants from UCC and UEW respectively were employed for the study. The Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) was used for the analysis of the data collected. The data obtained were mainly described with the help of frequencies and percentages. The results of the study indicated that most of the respondents entered the universities directly from the SHS and did not have any freehand cutting skills prior to entering the university. Their skills in pattern making were also limited. On confidence in cutting out, patternmaking was higher than freehand cutting so was their confidence in teaching the two skills upon graduation. The differences between clothing and textiles major and food and nutrition major in terms of confidence in teaching both skills were about the same. It is recommended that a full 3-credit course in freehand cutting be introduced at the university level. More attention should also be paid to methods of cutting out at the SHS level. Key words: Cutting out, confidence, teaching, teachers in training.

Can Incentive Effects in Web Surveys Be Generalized to Non-Western Countries? Conditional and Unconditional Cash Incentives in a Web Survey of Ghanaian University Students

Because research on the impact of web survey incentives has exclusively focused on Western settings, it is unclear to what extent current insights translate and generalize to non-Western societies, which are usually characterized by very different economic conditions, cultural traditions, and survey climates. The current article presents the results of a web survey incentives experiment among almost 4,440 Ghanaian university students who were offered conditional and unconditional incentives of different values (in the form of telephone credit). Our analyses partly replicate Western findings: Higher value incentives produce higher participation rates and unconditional incentives outperform conditional ones in the lower value conditions. In the case of relatively high incentives, however, conditional outperforms unconditional incentives. No differential effects of incentives on response quality were found.

The Internet Use for Health Information Seeking among Ghanaian University Students: A Cross-Sectional Study.

The aim of the study was to investigate university students' use of the Internet for health purpose in the Ghanaian context. The study employed a quantitative cross-sectional design. A total of 650 out of 740 students selected from 3 different universities participated, giving a response rate of 87.7% (650/740). Data were obtained using questionnaires and frequency and percentages were used to analyze data. The results show that university students are active users of the Internet as 78.3% (509/650) used Internet daily and 67.7% (440/650) use Internet for health purposes, for reasons including availability and ease of accessing information, privacy, confidentiality, and affordability. Use of Internet was constrained by unreliable and slow connection, high cost of Internet, and unreliable power supply. Also, 72.4% (315/435) used the online health information obtained as a basis for lifestyle change and only 39.5% (170/430) consulted health professionals after obtaining online information. The study concludes that students use Internet to seek online health support. The use of Internet to communicate with young people in relation to their health must therefore be explored. There is the need to be aware of online safety issues for young adults, including the need to provide information on privacy options.

Attitudes toward abortion among students at the University of Cape Coast, Ghana

ObjectivesThis study aimed to describe the attitudes toward abortion of Ghanaian University students and to determine factors which are associated with supporting a woman's right to an abortion. MethodsThis cross-sectional survey was administered to residential students at the University of Cape Coast. Participants were posed a series of 26 statements to determine to what extent they were supportive of abortion as a woman's right. An exploratory factor analysis was used to create a scale with the pertinent factors that relate to abortion attitudes and a multivariable linear regression model explored the relationships among significant variables noted during exploratory factor analysis. Results1038 students completed the survey and these students had a generally negative view of abortion. Two factors emerged: (1) the Abortion as a Right scale consisted of five questions (α = .755) and (2) the Moral Objection to Abortion scale consisted of three questions (α = .740). In linear regression, being older (β = 1.9), sexually experienced (β = 1.2), having a boyfriend/girlfriend (β = 1.4), and knowing someone who has terminated a pregnancy (β = 1.1) were significantly associated with a more liberal view of a right to an abortion. DiscussionThis work supports the idea that students who have personal exposure to an abortion experience hold more liberal views on abortion than those who have not had a similar exposure.

An Assessment of the Methods of Development in the Essays of Business Students in Ghanaian Private Universities: A Case Study

The study is an attempt to assess the methods of development in the compositions of students who are reading various business-oriented courses in private universities in Ghana. This area has received little attention from researchers in Ghana. Two private universities—Christian Service and Ghana Baptist University College—were the two selected cases. Prior investigations exposed students’ writing flaws in the form of wrong usage of the features of a particular method of development when writing essays. Therefore, the literature reviewed was mostly based on these gaps indicated. The primary data collected from the field were from texts (classroom-based and take-home-based texts). Basically, probability sampling techniques were employed to sample the population of the cases selected. All the data gathered were descriptively analysed. The findings showed that students have problems composing descriptive and comparison and contrast paragraphs or essays. But, the study brought to light that students handled narrative, argumentative, and cause and effect essays knowledgeably. It was recommended that enough attention should be given to the teaching and learning of descriptive and comparison and contrast essays. It is our expectation that the findings and recommendations of the work would influence the decisions of policy makers in the field of English language.

Determinants of Online Banking Adoption among Ghanaian University Students

The objective of this study is to determine bank customers’ awareness of Internet banking and the effect of trust and customer loyalty on Internet banking adoption intentions. The study employed the survey research design. The population of the study consisted of university students in Ghana. The convenience sampling technique was used to select the respondents. Data were analysed using multiple regression. The findings indicate that the respondents are aware of Internet banking. Additionally, the study found awareness, trust and customer loyalty as antecedents of Internet banking adoption. Recommendations have been provided at the end of the study.